A severely handicapped person, who has no control over his or her limbs or head, has great difficulty in expressing everyday needs. Frequently, a severely handicapped person of this type has control of the eyes and, therefore communication aids have been proposed in which movement of the patient's eyes can be used to determine needs or to transmit a message.
One communication aid of this type comprises a transparent rigid panel having a central opening, and a series of illustrations or other indicia, are spaced around. the central opening and depict various objects or needs of the patient. An operator, holding the panel before a patient, looks through the central opening and follows the eye movement of the patient as the patient's eyes move toward one of the illustrations. Through this method, the observer is able to determine the illustration and thus the need of the patient.
While communication aids of this type have been very successful, they are somewhat limited in the number of illustratations that can be positioned around the central opening. If too many illustrations are utilized, it is difficult for the observer to zero in on the illustration or other indicia at which the patient is looking. Further, it is frustrating to the patient when the operator is unable to readily comprehend the need or desire. Moreover, a handicapped person having only eye movement may be mentally alert and may desire an expanded vocabulary over that which is available in conventional communication aids.